“What! How did he get in?” Melissa questioned.
“He had a key, but I never gave him one,” Matt replied.
“Are you sure, maybe he was just looking for you?” Melissa contended.
“No, he knocked to make sure I wasn’t home before he went inside. Then when he was done, he made a call on his cell phone. I could overhear him talking about not finding the ‘stone’ and then discussing money.”
“I can’t believe he would do that,” Melissa asserted.
“I have proof,” Matt replied. “When he left, he dropped the piece of paper with the phone number on it.”
“Did you call it?” Melissa asked in a concerned tone.
“I did, and you would not believe who answered... it was the interrogator and he works for the Department of Defense.”
“You’re kidding me, that dirty bastard Greg is helping him?” Melissa fumed.
“He is, but I don’t want you to say anything to him. I was thinking it would be best if we just play along like there is nothing amiss. Then if he asks one of us about the stone, we can tell him that I threw it away,” Matt suggested.
“Alright,” Melissa agreed. “It’s going to be hard for me to hide my anger though.”
“I know, but we need to play along because it buys us more time. As long as the military thinks Greg has a chance to recover it for them, then they are less likely to arrest us again. I think they would prefer to get their hands on the dreamstone without causing a scene,” Matt remarked.
“I think the sooner we move off campus, the better,” Melissa suggested.
“I agree. Then Greg and the military won’t know where to look for the dreamstone. At least we solved the mystery of how the military learned that I took the stone from the desert... that jerk told them!” Matt added.
“How did Greg even know about the stone?” Melissa questioned.
“He saw it the night we were in the hotel in Bakersfield. We actually had an argument about it while you were taking your shower. He seemed upset that I didn’t tell the interrogator that I took the stone when he asked if we found anything in the desert,” Matt replied.
“That’s kind of an odd thing for him to be upset about,” Melissa remarked.
“I thought so too, but he was really concerned that if they found out that I was lying to them, then the military would punish us all for it. Maybe that’s why he turned on me so easily,” Matt suggested.
“That and the reward money,” Melissa said with an air of contempt.
“Like you mentioned earlier, moving off campus makes a lot of sense now that we know Greg has access to my dorm,” Matt remarked.
“Speaking of that, I called about the cottage and it’s still for rent. The owner said she is looking for a tenant who is capable of doing a little maintenance and clean up around the place. In return, she will charge less rent. I think she just wants to keep it from deteriorating since she isn’t able to work on it herself,” Melissa explained.
“I’m willing to earn my keep,” Matt remarked.
“She also said she didn’t want any ‘party animals’ moving in, and I assured her we weren’t like that. I said we were just a quiet couple working our way through college,” Melissa said with a smile.
“I suppose you want me to go look at it right away?” Matt asked in an unenthusiastic tone trying to pretend he was not interested.
“I know what you want... you can’t hide your feelings from me,” Melissa smirked.
“Alright, let’s go see it,” Matt replied, realizing that his bluff had been called.
Melissa led him down a winding paved road not far from campus. It was one of those older roads that seemed neglected and forgotten. Weeds were growing up from the exposed cracks in the sidewalk, and fallen leaves had formed a patchwork of brown and gold along the gutters.
“There it is,” Melissa announced as she pointed to a small white cottage sitting atop a gently sloping knoll that overlooked the old part of town.
“You want to move into that rodent infested, dilapidated death trap?” Matt teased.
“Oh, you love it,” Melissa replied as she ran across the street and knocked on the door of an older Victorian style house.
After a few moments an elderly lady opened the door and peered out.
“Hello, I’m Melissa. I called about the cottage.”
“Oh, I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon,” she replied.
“My fiancé and I had the afternoon off and thought we could stop by and see it if you have time to show it,” Melissa asked.
“Let me get the key, and I’ll take you over,” she replied.
“What’s your name young man?” she asked as they crossed the street.
“Hi, I’m Matt... I’m sorry I didn’t catch your name?”
“Mrs. Davenport, but my friends call me Roselyn,” she replied. Her response left Matt wondering if he was to call her Roselyn or Mrs. Davenport.
“Go on in and have a look,” she said after unlocking the door.
“Wow it’s so nice,” Melissa commented aloud as she looked around. “What do you think Matt?”
“I like it. It’s a lot larger than the dorms,” he noted.
“When could we move in?” Melissa asked when Roselyn walked in to check on them.
“As soon as you give me a deposit and the first and last month’s rent,” she replied.
“Don’t you need to do a credit check or something?” Matt asked.
“No, I can see you are a nice couple, and when you reach my age you can tell if a person is trustworthy or not. I do ask that you fill out a rental agreement and include it with your payment when you move in cottage,” she added as she handed them the forms.
“Thank you,” Melissa said with a smile. “We are definitely going to take it.”
“Okay, just come over when you’re ready,” Rosalyn said as she walked them out.
“Roselyn was sure a nice lady,” Matt commented as they headed back towards the campus.
“Yeah, she’s precious,” Melissa replied. “So, when do you think we can make the move?”
“I can get a moving van today if you like?” Matt replied.
“Really? Melissa said, skipping along next to him in excitement.
“Sure, I’ll take my car over and pick one up when we get back,” Matt offered.
“While you are doing that, I could go to your dorm and start packing your things if you like?” Melissa suggested.
“Thanks, that would great,” Matt replied. Then he gave her a quick kiss when they reached the campus parking lot and parted ways.
About an hour later Matt returned with a moving van and he went up to his dorm to check on Melissa.
“Wow, you’re almost done,” he remarked, amazed by her efficiency.
“The only thing I’m not sure of... is which box this Playboy should go into?” she revealed by waving it in the air back and forth several times. Matt turned bright red, embarrassed by its discovery.
“I forgot I had that,” he said in a voice that seemed to deny its very existence.
“Really?” Melissa remarked as she slowly opened the magazine and flipped through the pages, pausing several times to look at the horrified expression Matt’s face. “Oh Matt, what am I going to do with you?”
“I know, I’m beyond hope,” he exclaimed.
Melissa laughed and then tossed the magazine in one of his boxes.
“What’s so funny?” he asked.
“Come on, like I care if you look at a magazine, just as long as you don’t go falling in love with some other woman. I don’t care if you look,” Melissa replied.
“Really, you don’t care?” Matt said with a sigh of relief.
“Not at all, you’re a male and I know you are going to look. It’s human nature. Girls look too, but we’re a whole lot more discrete about it,” Melissa admitted with a smile. Matt reached over and took the magazine out of the box and tossed it into the trash.
“You don’t have
to throw it away on my account,” she remarked.
“I have you, and that’s enough,” Matt replied.
“Okay, but I really don’t mind. I know I can trust you, if I couldn’t, our relationship would be doomed from the start,” Melissa declared. Matt nodded in agreement as he packed up the last of his items.
“We should go over and grab your stuff next,” he suggested as he headed for the door.
“Alright,” Melissa agreed, as she followed after him, balancing several boxes in her arms.
After loading his stuff into the van, they went to Melissa’s dorm and picked up her things. Then they drove over to the cottage and parked across the street from it. Matt went over to Roselyn’s house and knocked on the door. When she answered, he handed her the signed rental agreement and a check.
“You kids are sure eager to move in,” Roselyn commented.
“Well, we really like the place and we didn’t want someone else to swoop in and get it,” Matt replied.
“The weeds are overgrown in the back yard,” Roselyn said as she handed him the keys.
“Don’t worry, Melissa and I will take good care of the place,” Matt promised.
“Alright, come over anytime if you need anything,” Roselyn said with a smile.
“Thanks,” Matt replied as he ran back across the street.
Once inside, Melissa started cleaning the dust and cobwebs off the counters while Matt brought their stuff in and started to unpack it. After a little while there was a gentle knocking at the door and Melissa went over to see who it could be. When she opened the door Roselyn handed her a plate of chocolate chip cookies.
“Come in,” Melissa offered.
“Oh, the place is already looking better. I guess it just needed a youthful touch to bring some life back into it,” she exclaimed.
“Well, after living in the dorms, we appreciate having a nice place to stay,” Melissa replied as she took a cookie off the plate and ate it.
“Oh, I’m glad I could help. I know it’s hard for young couples to find an affordable place to live, especially in a college town where the rent is so high,” Roselyn said while shaking her head.
“That’s true, there’s not much available this time of year,” Melissa replied.
“Well I had better be going, it’s almost time for the Price Is Right and I wait all day for that to come on. You and your husband can come over any time... don’t be shy, I’m almost always home,” she remarked as she turned for the door.
“Thanks for the cookies,” Melissa said as Roselyn slowly crossed the street.
“Did I hear something about cookies?” Matt asked as he came out to the kitchen from the bedroom.
“Yeah, Roselyn brought use a plate over,” she replied.
“What a nice lady,” Matt observed.
“How is the unpacking going?” Melissa asked.
“I’m almost done, but I need to put the dreamstone somewhere where it won’t mess with our sleep,” he remarked.
“You’re not going to continue communicating with Helios?” Melissa asked.
“I don’t want to waste their time with my silly questions,” Matt asserted.
“Stop trivializing your importance. They contacted you because you obviously possess qualities that are important to their effort. You are open-minded and intelligent, and most importantly you are not afraid of the unknown. Think how many people would run in fear if they were contacted by aliens. Humans typically fear what they don’t understand or can’t explain, but you don’t. Remember how I reacted to the dreamstone when I had my first experience with it... it totally freaked me out. You on the other hand, figured out how the dreamstone worked and were successful at communicating with the aliens, so quit belittling your role in this,” Melissa ordered.
“You are not afraid of the aliens now,” Matt replied.
“That’s true, but initially I was, and I would have given the dreamstone to the authorities at the first sign of trouble,” she confessed.
“Oh, I doubt that. You’re not one to be bullied by the authorities,” he remarked. Melissa nodded in agreement, but she knew deep down she wouldn’t have kept the dreamstone long enough to understand it.
“You could hide the dreamstone in your car again. I doubt the military is going find us now that we are off campus,” Melissa suggested.
“It might take them a while to find us, but we still need to play it safe. I don’t think we should tell anyone besides our closest family members that we have moved,” Matt proposed.
“Agreed,” Melissa replied.
Chapter 17
Matt set up his computer in the living room of the cottage and turned it on to verify that it was still working properly after the move. The computer started right up and he proceeded to go on-line and check his e-mail. There were no new messages other than spam, so he decided to see if he could find out more information about the Philadelphia Experiment. He knew it would be a difficult task because the project was secret, and few people working for the military would risk divulging too much information about it. Ideally though, he hoped he could find some clue that could lead him to an insider on the project. Someone who might listen to Helios, and also prevent the technology from being misused. He knew the odds were against him, but he had to start somewhere.
As Matt skimmed back over the available information about the Philadelphia Experiment, he noticed a reference to Montauk Air Force Station located in New York State. In that article, it claimed that the site had multiple underground levels that were used for classified experiments in the early 1950’s. Another article pointed out that despite the fact that the station was decommissioned in 1969, and donated to the New York State park system by the Federal Government; the deed for the land was for the surface the rights only. It also claimed that shortly after the site was decommissioned, a brand new gigawatt power substation was installed on the northern edge of the park. Not long after that, the FCC received numerous amateur radio operator complaints that there were ‘unusual’ RF signals emanating from the substation, that were causing intermittent disruptions to their communications. There were also several unexplained power outages in New York State that year that always included Montauk, Long Island.
When Matt finished reading the articles, he was sure that Montauk was the secret location of the ongoing hyper-reality experiments.
“Melissa?” Matt called out as he turned off his computer. Then when she did not answer, he walked out to the back porch and saw her pulling weeds to beautify the neglected landscape. Melissa did not notice his presence and he quietly sat on the porch swing and watched her work. Her movements seemed almost predatory as she crept along the ground pulling clumps of weeds in rapid succession. Matt gently pushed off with his foot and the swing creaked and groaned as it swayed back and forth. Melissa pretended not to notice the sound as she slowly reached for a firm clump of weeds and pulled it loose. Then she quickly turned and threw the root ball in his direction. It exploded across his chest and Melissa burst into laughter as Matt wiped the debris from his shirt. Matt jumped out of the swing and ran towards the garden hose next to the side of the house, but Melissa had anticipated his move and reached it first. Matt, realizing his miscalculation, quickly turned and ran towards the back door of the cottage. As he headed for safety, Melissa dowsed his backside with water before he could make it inside. A few moments later Melissa tentatively walked inside to check on him.
“Are you all dried off?” she asked with a devilish laugh.
“Oh, I’m fine,” he replied as he slowly inched closer to her. Melissa immediately turned to get away when she realized what he was doing, but he caught the back of her shorts. She struggled to pull free, but the smooth hardwood floors provided little traction as Matt pulled her towards the bedroom. Melissa continued to try and get away, but his grip was secure. When they reached the edge of the bed he lifted her onto it and proceeded to punish her by tickling her sides. She squirmed and laughed uncontrollably thrashing about as he
continued to tickle her. Then when he paused to let her catch her breath, she broke free and flipped him onto his back. She immediately returned the favor by tickling him unmercifully for several minutes until he finally succumbed to her retaliatory attack. He did not try and get up and Melissa did not get off of him either. She slowly lowered her head until her lips nearly touched his and he lifted his head to complete the kiss. Then he wrapped his arms around her waist and gently caressed her. Melissa responded by reaching over and pulling the window shade cord to darken the room. Then she pulled the covers over them and they snuggled for a while, followed by a peaceful afternoon nap.
When Matt woke up he heard the low rumble of a helicopter approaching and he hopped out of bed to take a look at it.
“What is it?” Melissa asked as Matt pulled the window shade up part-way and peered out.
“There is a helicopter hovering a short distance away.”
“That’s strange. Why are they just sitting there?” she asked when she peeked out the window at it.
“I don’t know…and I don’t like it,” Matt replied as he went looking for his binoculars.
“Don’t bother, they’ve already left,” Melissa called out when she noticed what he was doing.
“Damn it, I wanted to get a closer look at it,” he replied.
“You don’t think they were spying on us do you?” Melissa asked in a nervous tone.
“I don’t know, but the military could be keeping tabs on us,” Matt stated in a paranoid tone.
Melissa did not like the thought of being watched or followed, and she resented the idea of having ‘Big Brother’ violate their freedom.
“We haven’t done anything wrong. Why are they doing this to us?” she remarked.
“We don’t even know if that was the military, it could have been a private helicopter sightseeing along the ocean,” Matt suggested.
“It was an all black helicopter that looked just like the one we were on in the desert,” Melissa contended.
“I know, but let’s not overreact, I’m still thinking it was just a coincidence,” Matt concluded.
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